Project Number: 5320-22430-025-09
Project Type: Reimbursable

Start Date: Jul 30, 2011
End Date: Jul 29, 2013

Objective:
1. Identify components of systems approaches that would be useful in implementation of such an approach for e.g. tomatoes based on selected scenarios when pests such as fruit flies are found to be present. 2. Quantify to the extent possible how the different components such as application of low-prevalence, or poor host status might be used to mitigate risk to an acceptable level. Determine if in-field and/or post harvest mitigations (i.e. inspection, sampling, packaging, etc) can lower infestations. Identify data gaps and provide research as needed to improve information. 3. Assess systems using probabilistic models and/or point and range estimates to quantify overall risk of establishment in the importing country.

Approach:
Our approach will be to use tomatoes that are poor hosts of tephritid fruit flies as the crop/pest model and develop a proposed systems approach that might allow affected growers to move their product outside a quarantine area. We will establish the parameters and components of a systems approach which would mitigate the risk associated with the quarantine based on established biologically-based concepts such as low pest prevalence, poor-host status, and/or less than probit 9 regulatory treatments. Finally we will assess the system to determine if the mitigation measures as identified in the systems approach would sufficiently mitigate risk using models and data developed from this project. The specific outcomes of this project would be to provide regulatory groups and the industry with specific information on how this new risk mitigation method could work in practice.